Tag Archives: TV

Since this is probably my favorite graphic tale on the shelves these days, it goes without saying that I was pretty excited to hear that it is also being developed into a television series. According to the studios:

“‘The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’ reimagines the origin and adventures of ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch’ as a dark coming-of-age story that traffics in horror, the occult and, of course, witchcraft. Tonally in the vein of ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ and ‘The Exorcist,’ this adaptation finds Sabrina wrestling to reconcile her dual nature — half-witch, half-mortal — while standing against the evil forces that threaten her, her family and the daylight world humans inhabit.”

Anyway, this issue continues to explore the darkest corners of human nature, including incestuous thoughts that Sabrina’s resurrected father entertains. But for me what makes this issue, and the series as a whole, most interesting is the incorporation of mythology and occult philosophy.

As a back story, Sabrina performed an act of necromancy to raise her dead boyfriend, Harvey. Unbeknownst to her, she actually resurrected her dead father in the form of her boyfriend. Sabrina’s aunts summon psychopomps to ferry the resurrected soul back to the realm of the dead. “Psychopomps are creatures, spirits, angels, or deities in many religions whose responsibility is to escort newly deceased souls from Earth to the afterlife. Their role is not to judge the deceased, but simply to provide safe passage. Appearing frequently on funerary art, psychopomps have been depicted at different times and in different cultures as anthropomorphic entities, horses, deer, dogs, whip-poor-wills, ravens, crows, owls, sparrows and cuckoos.” In this story, the psychopomps are visually depicted as cerebral jellyfish, sort of brains with tentacles, which is interesting when one considers that Carl Jung asserted that “the psychopomp is a mediator between the unconscious and conscious realms.” (Source: Wikipedia)

The installment ends on a dark and foreboding note. Sabrina’s cousin, Ambrose, reminds her of a basic tenet in the mystical arts, that every act has its consequence and the cost of the act must always be paid in full.

“Everything must be paid for, cousin… including Harvey. You ultimately ripped Harvey from his grave… so now you must send someone else to their premature death. Put plainly… you’re going to have to kill someone, Sabrina.”

Everything we do has a consequence, and this should be remembered at all times when we deal with others in the world. Nothing that we do is free from impunity. This is a natural law from which there is no avoidance.

First off, I find it weird that Chuck Berry and Chuck Barris died within a week. Their names as so similar it is just an odd coincidence.

Anyway, I met Chuck Barris at a reading when he came out with The Big Question. The book is good, kind of a dystopian view of TV game shows, something he would know about. During the Q-and-A session I asked him what the most outrageous act was that he ever had on The Gong Show. He told me it was The Popsicle Twins. They put them forth assuming the censors would be so offended they would ban them and then they would be able to slide some borderline acts under the radar, but lo and behold, they were not censored. Of course, I went right home and looked up “Gong Show Popsicle Twins” on YouTube. Yeah… it’s exactly what you expect. But the commentary from the judges is priceless.

After the reading and discussion, Chuck was kind enough to sign the copy of my book.

While I do not consider him a literary great, and some people would go as far as saying he decimated culture, but I still consider him an icon of popular culture. If you grew up in the 70’s like I did, there was no escaping The Gong Show and the impact it had. And then there is the question raised in his autobiography, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. Was he also a CIA operative? The CIA denies this claim, but isn’t that exactly what the CIA does–deny allegations? I suppose we will now never know the truth.

On my last trip to Comic Envy, the owner had added a new comic to my folder, thinking it would be something I might find interesting. He obviously knows my taste. This is the first installment of a new series based on the television series of the same name. When I was younger, I watched “Tales from the Darkside” a lot. The program featured short vignettes about supernatural occurrences. I found it to be like a modern Twilight Zone, creepy tales, usually with a twist at the end. Anyway, I was definitely intrigued by the comic.

So this tale is about a lifeguard who falls asleep at work, resulting in the drowning death of a woman. He gets off in court, but is consumed with guilt and remorse. Then something strange begins to happen. He starts having a narcoleptic effect on people. Everyone he encounters falls into a deep sleep, adding to his psychological isolation and torment.

In keeping with the original television series, there is a nice twist at the end. Sorry, I’m not going to spoil it. You’ll have to read it for yourself.

I will definitely continue reading this. The next tale will be delivered in two installments. I’m thinking I will wait until I have both issues, then read them consecutively, so you will have to wait a while for the next post on this graphic novel. But remember…

The darkside is always there,
waiting for us to enter—
waiting to enter us.
Until next time,
Try to enjoy the daylight.

Yes! I am so psyched that the writers have brought Frank Black from “Millennium” back and incorporated him into the story. “Millennium” was one of my favorite shows and its untimely end saddened me, although Black did return and was featured in an X-Files episode. “Millennium” is the only TV series that I own on DVD.

Anyway, for those of you who are unfamiliar with Frank Black, he is a retired FBI profiler with psychic abilities that allow him to see visions of what serial killers are thinking and feeling. His investigations are centered around apocalyptic fears and events associated with the millennium.

In this issue, Black comes to assist Mulder in the investigation surrounding Joanie Cartwright. Frank senses that an evil entity is behind the events. After Cartwright and her followers commit a mass suicide, the entity takes possession of a person and the issue leaves you hanging.

I can’t wait to find out what happens. I would really be psyched if they branched out and did a Millennium comic, or a film. I suppose I will have to wait until more is revealed.